nightmare.

I woke up. Well I guess that is what you can call it. I was in the back seat of a van. I opened the door, revealing a town. The sky was so bright I quickly closed the door and huddled back in the darkness. Then a man sat in the front seat of the car. I heard him mumbling something. I stepped toward him.
"Hello" I spoke in an unfamiliar voice. I reached out to touch him.
He screamed. His face ran pale, as if he had seen a ghost.
"Meghan?" he reached out to touch me. His hand was so warm. He looked frightened and confused.
We sat there, staring at each other until I realized whom this man was, my father. He had lost a lot of weight and his voice seemed harsh and unfriendly, not like I remember it.
I looked into the rearview mirror. I saw a girl, myself. But not as I remembered seeing myself. I had long, thin, straight black hair. It was perfect. I had a pale, but perfect complexion. Except when I pushed back my bangs on my forehead, it revealed a large scratch.
Father and I talked. He told me that mother had died, and Alex went off to college. He also told me that I died about five years ago, one year before mother. My body was found at the bottom of a construction site. In a large ditch, I lay at the bottom; my body parts sprawled apart like a puzzle. I was horrified at the image.
Father told me that after he was left alone, he moved away to start a new life. He didn’t change his name, but he changed his story. He didn’t tell anyone in this new town of the dreaded death of his beloved daughter, or his adored wife. All these people knew was that he had a son, off in college, and a daughter living with her mother, somewhere far away.
"Heaven" I whispered.
"Yes, I prayed that the Lord would take you and your mother to heaven, and keep you safe" he said in a low hopeful voice. "It still shocks me, that you are here. I don’t understand it" he sighed. "You look beautiful Meghan. Would you like to see the town?" he asked hopefully.
"Sure Dad, I would love to".
Before I left the van, Dad ran to the apartment and grabbed some old clothes of mine. They still fit perfectly. A pair of black skinny jeans, a white tank top, a black "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" jacket, red Converse’s, underwear, a few necklaces and bracelets, and my favorite red bow. I remembered that bow, the clasp broke when I stepped on it, but I guess my dad fixed it.
We walked out of the apartment, but instead of taking the van, we walked into town. It was the nicest town. Filled with shops and dinners. It seemed like something my father had always wanted to live in. As we walked hand-in-hand many people called out to my father saying hello.
Finally we arrived at this stored called Robinson’s where everyone knew my father. I was introduced to everyone he knew, even Robinson himself. Dad handed him a fifty and a piece of paper that said "rent" on it. I went about my business and looked at the make-up and jewelry. I asked my dad if I could buy some things and he agreed without a thought. I picked up some make-up, a few bracelets, and some new clothes. I even got Dad to let me get my ears pierced.
Soon the sun set, and we walked back to the apartment. Dad let me sleep in his bed while he slept on the couch, he said we would get me a bed tomorrow. Dad’s room was so simple. White bed sheets, white pillowcases, white comforter, and tan walls. He had a nice sized TV with a lot of movies. I watched TV until I fell asleep.
I woke up to my dad screaming on the phone. I couldn’t really understand what he was saying because he was far away. He seemed angry. Me being me, I wouldn’t snoop and listen in on his conversation. So I waited until I heard him hang up to walk out of the room.
I walked into the bathroom. I noticed that my eyes weren’t as brown as yesterday, they looked kind of brighter. I didn’t think anything of it, and continued on with my day.
Dad said there was a dance tonight at Robinson’s and that he wanted to buy me a dress. So we went to the dress shop and got a black and purple dress with matching shoes. I was so excited. But then I remembered everything my father had told me.
I ran back to the apartment and went straight into the bathroom crying.
I am dead. Why am I here now? I thought.
I looked up into the mirror. I was as pale as paper. My eyes weren’t brown at all. They were a sky blue. I lifted up my bangs and saw that my scar was bleeding. I screamed.
I sat in the bathtub, crying.
*　
I was sitting on Dad’s bed holding the phone. I wanted to call Alex, or one of my old friends, but I knew I couldn’t. I still remembered everyone’s cell number. I wanted words of wisdom from someone I trusted. I couldn’t trust Dad anymore.
The door swung open. Dad looked worried sick. He dropped the dress and the shoebox.
"Meghan. I will explain everything later. Just get dressed. We are going to the dance. Afterwards, I’ll explain everything" Dad said as he walked me into the bathroom to put a Band-Aid on my forehead.
We patched up my forehead, and I changed into the dress. It went down a little bit past my knees. And I walked out and saw Dad in a tux. He looked very good when he cleaned up, he always did.
There was something about my father that struck me as different. It wasn’t just his attitude. He looked different in a way, but I couldn’t put my finger on it exactly.
We walked to Robinson’s it looked beautiful. It was all lit up, and the sun had just set, so it really stood out.
I couldn’t help but imagine what my father was going to tell me. It scared me in a way. Was it about my death? Was it about mother? I just wanted to know.
After a while I looked at my father. Then I noticed exactly what was different about his look. He looked psycho. He looked absolutely insane, but no one seemed to notice.
The room froze. Everyone was still. Except me. I could still move. And father, he moved. He was looking out the window at the moon. A full moon. As I looked at it to, my forehead hurt.
Dad and I seemed to fade. I tried to scream out for help, but no one heard me.
I seemed to be by the old wishing well. I walked over to it. I looked down into the water and saw that it was the Meghan I remembered. Then I saw my Dad behind me, I turned around to hug him. He held a knife up to my throat. Then bashed my head on the well’s edge, right where I remembered the scar. Then he threw me into the well. I was unconscious, and soon drowned.
*　　
I walked into Robinson’s just to find a girl sitting on my father’s lap in a chair. Across from them was Robinson. He sat at the table yelling. The girl turned her head sharply and stared at me. It was the ‘dead’ Meghan. She stared at me so intently. I got scared, but I couldn’t look away.
Her eyes seemed to take me into a memory, but it was something I never saw before. It was mom and dad. Mom was crying and yelling at dad.
"How could you have killed our daughter? She was everything to you!" she yelled.
Dad pulled out that same knife he held up to my throat, and stabbed my mother. She lay on the kitchen floor, cold and dead.
I started to cry and shut my eyes.
I was back at Robinson’s, I was standing in the room all alone. I looked at the wall to my left, there was giant claw marks in it. I stepped back and bumped into someone.
"Dad?" I questioned as I turned around.
He stood there, with a psychotic smile on his face.
I ran.
I didn’t know where I was going.
Instincts just told me to keep going.
After running for so long, I found myself at the doorstep of my old house. I ran inside. Went straight to what used to be my room, and found Alex. He sat there in shock. He came up and hugged me.
"I love you Meghan, don’t ever scare me like that again. No more hide-and-seek."

* these are where I woke up. and then soon fell back asleep.